[excerpt] Health technology is a still-evolving field in Peru. These two examples show how mHealth can provide new approaches for diagnosing and reducing morbidity from NCDs. In order to fully benefit from mHealth, Peru needs a collective effort that involves broad-based support from governmental sectors and private organizations, as well as incorporates community feedback. I am positive that health technology will reform health delivery in Peru and will be a driving force to make the health care sector more sustainable.

Objectives.

To determine the availability of national systems for surveillance of birth defects in Latin America and the Caribbean and describe their characteristics.

Objective.

To present a methodology for the empirical evaluation of primary health care (PHC) through the construction of digital representations of potential PHC coverage areas.

The increasing geographical spread and disease incidence of arboviral infections are among the greatest public health concerns in the Americas. The region has observed an increasing trend in dengue incidence in the last decades, evolving from low to hyperendemicity. Yellow fever incidence has also intensified in this period, expanding from sylvatic-restricted activity to urban outbreaks. Chikungunya started spreading pandemically in 2005 at an unprecedented pace, reaching the Americas in 2013.

Objective

Evaluate the impact of the Adult Respiratory Diseases (ERA) Program and the General System of Explicit Health Guarantees (GES) on mortality from community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in persons aged ≥65 years in Chile.

Abstract is not available

Objective.

To investigate the association between red and processed meat consumption and the occurrence of new cases of insulin resistance (IR) and diabetes mellitus (DM) in participants of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil).

Objectives.

The Zika outbreak affected several tropical countries in 2015 and 2016, requiring the creation of intensified surveillance strategies for microcephaly and other neurological syndromes. The effect of the Zika outbreak on the reporting of birth defects in Colombia was evaluated from the perspective of the national surveillance system.

This analysis reviews the situation of child and adolescent mental health in Chile, organizational determinants, and the initiatives and interventions implemented to enhance child development despite the country’s inequities. Progressive development of national mental health plans is covered, from the country’s first plan in 2000, to growing the number of mental health professionals and the training they receive, such as MhGAP, to the implementation of “Chile Crece Contigo,” whose preliminary evaluations are starting to show some effectiveness.

Objective.

Estimate tobacco use in adults in 2015 and observance of the provisions of the General Law for the Control of Tobacco and its Harmful Effects on Health and its regulations.

Methods.

A cross-sectional study was conducted using the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) in homes, with national representation based on a three-stage probabilistic sample by sex and area of residence.